Single mom Kate Dennison finds her new reporting job at a local paper is not at all what she expected. On her first day, two men die in a fire apparently set by a militant environmentalist group called The Forces of Nature. Kate is assigned to cover the story, including the trial of the young man charged with the crime. As she works to unearth the truth, she begins to fear for her own safety and is faced with the loss of her daughter, her freedom and even her life.

My Thought

I'm always read about crime stories in the newspapers and as a forensic science student I always look at the cases from the eyes of an investigator or the criminals and victims. However, Judi Nichols brought me into a new perspective which I never even thought before. Investigate the crime scene from the point of view of a journalist. Do you ever wonder how the crime reporters could come out with all the crime stories? They also do their own investigations. That is what the protagonist of "Tree Huggers", Kate Dennison, a single mother and a reporter of Beacon does. She gets an assignment to cover the story about an arson case with two people getting killed. Her coverage of the story makes her as the next target for the criminals. Her office is bombed, a treat letter is sent to her, and she even gets the gun barrel pointed to her head.

I loved the way Judy Nichols write the story. She not only focuses on journalism and the crime, but she also makes a really good job in discussing about the family matters, environmental crisis, as well as the society issues. Kate is divorced with a daughter, Molly in her custody. I kind of understand what it feels to be a child like Molly because I also came from a broken family. She yearns for love from her parents and wish that her father and mother will reconcile but when her father remarried with another woman, she has to adjust herself to get together with her steps. I have to admit that it's not an easy thing to do and it sometimes gives a lot of pressure to the children.Nichols also pointed out about the environmental crisis. How the development may cause a great damage to the environment if it is not properly planned and this may cause a conflict between the environmentalists and the the developers. The crime in Tree Huggers is a result from that conflict. The development is good for human civilization, but when human become greedy, they tend to act beyond their right mind and cause very regretful damages to nature.

Judy Nichols' writing style is quite intelligent and fruitful. I'm not only enjoyed the story but at the same time she makes me realized about some important issues in our life. However, there are several things that can be improved in her writing. First is the development of the characters. The main characters developed very well but the others are just superficial and sometimes very dull. The second thing is, for a thriller novel, straightforwardness is not good. A thriller supposed to be unpredictable, full of surprises and also twisted all over so that the readers can feel the suspense and the thrill.

As a whole, Tree Huggers is a good book as it discussed a couple of critical issues such as family relationship, environmental crisis, as well as the problems arise in our society with a bit of thrills and ends exactly the way I like.

Favourite Quotes

Don’t burden your child with your worries. Children are not little adults, they can’t help you with your problems at work, and telling them about how much you hate your job will only make them anxious and upset.

Remember, most children of divorced parents cling to the hope their parents will reconcile. A remarriage means giving up this dream.

CoffeeNCracker's Meter

4 Cups of Coffee: Though this is not a great thriller novel, "Tree Huggers" still have lots of strong points which makes the book such an enjoyable one. Recommended to all of you, readers.

Disclaimer: I received a review copy courtesy of Judy Nichols in exchange for a fair review. Receiving a copy in no way will ever reflected my review and these are my honest review.